Forty Million Credit Cards Stolen from Target

If you have shopped at Target since Black Friday, your credit card number may have been stolen by an extremely sophisticated and widespread cybertheft of as many as 40 million credit and debit cards. To protect yourself, you should immediately check for fraudulent charges, especially if you have used a debit card. While credit card holders have 60 days to report fraud and a maximum $50 liability, debit card holders have only two days before their liability balloons to $500. According to security experts, fraudsters will typically check the validity of the cards they have stolen with a small charge, such as coffee or a book. The Secret Service is investigating and credit card issuers are watching for potentially fraudulent charges.